Having success on his own for a bit, he later joined the folk rock supergroup Crosby, Stills & Nash as a fourth member in 1969, thus forming Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young. He forged a successful and acclaimed solo career, releasing his first album in 1968. His career has since spanned over 40 years and 34 studio albums, with a continual and uncompromising exploration of musical styles; his musical vision is notably referred to by his autobiographical tune"The Loner". Music critics have often called him one of the best single artists of all time, and several tunes such as "Heart of Gold" and "Rockin' in the Free World" remain popular on rock radio.
According to the Don't Be Denied Songfacts, the 16-year-old Neil was raising chickens and selling the eggs, with plans to go to Ontario Agricultural College and be a farmer. Only his leisure activities foretold his future, when he would hide from his family problems in his room with his transistor radio playing local station CHUM. From this, Young experienced a growing admiration for rock n roll originators such as Chuck Berry, Little Richard, Jerry Lee Lewis, and, of course, Elvis Presley. In 1958, his father bought Neil his first music instrument, a plastic ukulele. His father would later recall, "He would close the door of his room... and we would hear plunk, pause while he moved his fingers to the next chord, plunk, pause while he moved again, plunk."
In Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada, Neil started his professional music career in the mid-60s with a number of bands in Canada, including the Squires and later the Mynah Birds, which also included fellow future Buffalo Springfield bassist Bruce Palmer and future funk star Rick James. When the Mynah Birds broke up, Young and Palmer headed to California to meet Stephen Stills, whom he had met in Thunder Bay, and the result was Buffalo Springfield. That band split up after releasing three critically acclaimed albums, particularly achieving international fame for their tune "For What It's Worth".
Showing his strengths as a cynical yet experimental songwriter in the group, he also sung prominently in some of the band's songs such as the biting satire of 'rock star' life "Mr. Soul". Neil soon started his solo career with the release of 'Neil Young' on November 12, 1968. The album did not do very well commercially, but it included several strong tracks, including "The Loner", said to be a portrait of Stephen Stills but also being deeply auto-biographical.
On May 14, 1969, he recruited members of Crazy Horse and made the critically acclaimed 'Everybody Knows This Is Nowhere'. This was a much more consistent album, being the first to introduce longstanding collaborators Crazy Horse and beingbuilt around the balanced interplay between the guitar playing of Young and the talented Danny Whitten. The album also featured two lengthy classics, "Down by the River" and "Cowgirl in the Sand". The critically acclaimed solo album "After the Gold Rush" came out in 1971, featuring such classic songs as "Southern Man'", "Only Love Can Break Your Heart" and "Don't Let it Bring You Down". Harvest followed in 1972 with the hit"Heart of Gold".
During this time he also enjoyed considerable success as a quarter of Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young.
Neil's subsequent work has zig-zagged across genres - dabbling in country rock on "Old Ways"; electronics on "Trans"; hooking up with the Shocking Pinks in a homage to old-time Rock 'n' Roll on "Everybody's Rockin'"; creating a wall of feedback on the live Arc-Weld; and cementing his status as Godfather of Grunge when collaborating with Pearl Jam on Mirror Ball.
His idiosyncratic approach to genre even led to him being sued by his record company (Geffen) in the 80s for making "uncharacteristic" music.
Young has also dabbled in film, most recently on the album/concert series/dvd Greendale.
Young is often known by the nickname "Shakey." According to his biographer Jimmy McDonough, the name was given by his friends after noticing very unsteady results holding a camera for home movies.
Young founded Pono Music, whose mission was to bring a digital player, download store, and streaming service devoted to hi-res music. It was a commercial flop and was shut down in 2016. Young has stated that the labels would not agree that "All songs should cost the same, regardless of digital resolution."
The film Canadian Bacon includes the line "Canadians are always trying to figure out a lot of ways to ruin our lives. The metric system, for the love of God! Celsius! Neil Young!"
For recent news see: http://www.neilyoung.com/
Cocaine Eyes
Neil Young Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Ain't a day goes by, I don't burn a little bit of my soul
Scored some friends along the way
Did what I did, said what I had to say
And I'd do it all again if I had to today
When all is said and done
I'm the one.
It's a long hard road when you try to find peace of mind
Some might go for poison
And some go for too much stuff
Some just go to sleep at night
And forget to wake up.
Cocaine eyes
Can't hide your face
It's no surprise
You lose the race
Again.
Ain't a day goes by, I don't burn a little bit of my soul
Ain't a day goes by, I don't burn a little bit of my soul
Scored some friends along the way
Did what I did, said what I had to say
And I'd do it all again if I had to today
'Cause when all is said and done
I'm the one.
I'm the one, yeah.
Cocaine eyes
It won't hide your face
It's no surprise
You lost the race
Once again
My old friend.
The lyrics to Neil Young's song "Cocaine Eyes" convey the notion of pain, regret and guilt. The repeated lines, "Ain't a day goes by, I don't burn a little bit of my soul" suggest that the singer indulges in some form of self-destructive behavior on a daily basis, leading to the gradual deterioration of his soul. The lyrics also touch on the idea of losing friends along the way and the internal struggle to find peace of mind. The lines "Some might go for poison, and some for too much stuff, some just go to sleep at night, and forget to wake up" serve as a cautionary tale of the dangers of substance abuse.
The chorus of the song, "Cocaine eyes, can't hide your face, it's no surprise, you lose the race again" reinforces the theme of self-destruction and addiction. The reference to "Cocaine eyes" implies that the singer is struggling with a cocaine addiction, which manifests itself in his appearance, rendering him unable to hide his struggle. The final lines of the song "Once again, my old friend" suggest that despite the damage done by his addiction, the singer continues to return to the substance.
Line by Line Meaning
Ain't a day goes by, I don't burn a little bit of my soul
Every single day, I am a little more broken and hurt inside
Scored some friends along the way
I made some friends during my life journey
Did what I did, said what I had to say
I acted according to what I thought was necessary at the time, spoke my mind
And I'd do it all again if I had to today
If given the choice, I would make the same decisions and choices made earlier in my life
When all is said and done
After everything is over and done with
I'm the one.
I am responsible for myself and my actions
It's a long hard road when your friends start to leave you behind
It is difficult when your friends start to move on and leave you alone
It's a long hard road when you try to find peace of mind
Finding inner peace is a difficult journey
Some might go for poison
Some people turn to harmful things to cope
And some go for too much stuff
Some people turn to excessive things to cope
Some just go to sleep at night
Some people disconnect and avoid dealing with their problems by sleeping
And forget to wake up.
Some people may never awaken from the numbness and disconnect they have created for themselves
Cocaine eyes
Eyes that are strained, exhausted, and bloodshot from drug abuse
Can't hide your face
Your face and eyes show the signs and symptoms of drug abuse despite trying to hide it
It's no surprise
It is predictable and expected that drug abuse will have negative consequences
You lose the race
Trying to keep up with drug abuse is an endless and losing battle
Again.
Drug abuse is a vicious cycle that repeats itself
My old friend.
Referring to the drug addiction as an old friend who is always present
I'm the one, yeah.
Reaffirming that he takes responsibility for himself and his struggles
Lyrics © O/B/O APRA/AMCOS
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
JK YouTube
He’s got
Neil Young Archives Volume 3 (1976-1990) coming - expected to have Give to the Wind Orchestra (1977 live with Nicolette Larson) and Johnny’s Island (1982)
Unreleased albums such as
Early Daze (from 1969 with Crazy Horse)
CSNY at Fillmore East (1970 live)
Harvest Time (1971, for Harvest’s 50th anniversary)
Oceanside-Countryside (1977, “origin of Comes a Time”)
Chrome Dreams (1977, the original album, before Chrome Dreams II in 2007)
Boarding House Solo (1978 live with songs such as Shots in acoustic form)
Old Ways (1983 original unreleased version that was rejected by Geffen)
Road of Plenty (Neil Young live with the Bluenotes)
Times Square (Neil Young with the Restless)
Live Freedom (Archives Vol. 4 - 90s Release)
Mirror Ball Live (1995 Pearl Jam with Neil Young)
Toast (2001 Neil Young with Crazy Horse)
Alchemy (Neil Young and Crazy Horse, 2012 Psychedelic Pill [?] tour)
The Tower - Philadelphia (2018 live)
Polar Vortex (2019 live)
Noise and Flowers (2019 live with Promise of the Real)
These are just some of the releases, and none of these are confirmed yet however
Mario Glebbeek
Keep on rocking..Neil..Is what the world needs now more as ever
Deb Lynn
Hello from Florida !!
Just wanted to say you are so right about what you said !! 100%
Dave T.
Rock and roll will never die !!!
Aston of Mulah
Hey, Hey, My, My...
Sharda Venzi
Simplesmente FODA!
Nelson Fragoso
Mais uma obra prima de Neil Young!!!!!
Deb Lynn
Still sounds great !!
Love Neil Youngs music since I was a kid !! Still in 2022
Keep Rocking 🎸✌✌✌
Paul Walker
Pre covid,living within covid post covid,Neil Young still is the go to for me to listen to music,Rockin in the Free World,👍😎❤
KQD2
That full throttle jam!!! 🙌
ModaMontArt
Wow this is great , way to go Uncle Neil , Peace !